Join LMA for ourfirst-ever Twitter chat on Thursday, September 22, at 1 p.m. CT. We will be using the hashtag #LMAchat, and our topic will be leadership in legal marketing, mentorship and career advice. You’ll also get a peek at some of the content that will be atthe LMA Leadership Development Certificate programand be able to network with other legal marketing professionals.

When:Thursday, September 22, 2016, 1 p.m. CTWhere:TwitterModerator:@LMAintlSpecial Guest:@LeadStar(Courtney Lynch, founder of Lead Star and co-author of Leading from the Front)Hashtag:#LMAchat

New to Twitter chats? No problem! Here’s all you need to know:

What Is a Twitter Chat?

A Twitter chat is a live, hour-long, moderated event that focuses on a single topic of conversation. It happens at a specific time and is a chance for people with similar interests to gather, learn and share. A hashtag is used to make it easy to follow the conversation.

How do I Participate?

You’ll need a Twitter account. To participate, just tweet using the hashtag. Or you can choose not to engage and just follow the conversation using the hashtag.

Are There Rules?

Think of them more as guidelines than rules. Here are a few tips:

Stay on topic. Moderators are present during Twitter chats to make sure things don’t go too far off topic. If you do find yourself wanting to engage in a separate conversation, do so through private messages. Chats use a question-and-answer format to further organize the discussion. We suggest using Q1/A1 syntax, like this:

The moderator will control the questions (or topics) and will shift the conversation every 10 minutes or so, depending on the flow of the discussion.

Always use the hashtag. Each Twitter chat has a hashtag associated with it. Use it in every post, or your tweet won’t show up as part of the conversation.

If you arrive late, look through the other posts before beginning. You need to be caught up with the conversation, so take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with what has been said. This keeps re-posts from occurring, and it keeps the chat moving.

Be pleasant and courteous. This should go without saying, but it is amazing how many people will ignore this golden rule. Don’t start an argument. If you disagree on something, be polite in how you say so and conduct the conversation like a debate.

Respond to people by name. Twitter chats move quickly, and by the time you respond to someone it might not be clear who you were speaking to. Always include their Twitter handle at the beginning of any response. Don’t use real names as not everyone present is likely to know who the person is.

Know what constitutes spam. Posting a link about the topic in question probably won’t raise any eyebrows. Continuously posting the same link, or repeating the same comment over and over, will almost always be flagged. So will posting links that are not related to the topic. If in doubt, ask a moderator.

Make sure your Twitter feed is not private. Your posts won’t come up on the chat even if you use the hashtag. You need to make all posts public so others not following you can see what you are saying.

We’re looking forward to you joining us for the first #LMAchat! Get ready to talk #leadership. See you on Thursday, September 22, at 1 p.m. CT.